16 November 2022

Announcing the 2022 Shortlist for the Catalyse Nonfiction Prize!

Express Media is delighted to announce the shortlist for the 2022 Catalyse Nonfiction Prize!  

In 2022, entries were received from across Australia and spanned essay, memoir, poetry, journalism and experimental creative nonfiction. Submissions explored the human experience, the environment, queer issues, self-care, food, culture and mental health. 

Express Media is thrilled by the number of entries and by the incredible calibre of the writing submitted. Nearly 100 entries were received this year—representing a wide variety of genre, narrative voices, and literary techniques. It only seems fitting given the incredible quantity of high calibre work, that for the first time ever we have selected a shortlist of ten outstanding entries for this prize! 

The shortlist was decided by external judges appointed by Express Media, with the winners selected by the Deakin Nonfiction judging panel; David Mccooey, Julia Carlomagno and Mira Schlosberg. 

The 2022  Catalyse Nonfiction Prize shortlist is: 

  • “Everywhere’ by Phoebe Lupton
  • ‘Protests are dead. Long live protests?’ by Elena Perse
  • ‘EYE,’ by Viv Baker 
  • ‘Marrickville: Is there no alternative?’ by Robbie Mason
  • ‘I Have Always Been a Runner’ by Noa Shenker 
  • ‘A fiery light of exceeding brilliance’ by Sarah (Sar) Bostock (Fegan) 
  • ‘Am I Gay?’ by Jess Beverly
  • ‘Privilege’ by Suri Matondkar
  • ‘Trick of the Light’ by Elizabeth Bourke
  • ‘Tales beyond Whiteness: racial diversity in the publishing industry (an essay)’ by Roumina Parsamand 

Our shortlisted writers will receive an invitation to an exclusive craft development masterclass with some of Australia’s best nonfiction writers and a generous selection of new-release books from UQP.

The winner of the 2022 Catalyse Nonfiction Prize will receive a cash prize of $2,000 and an editorial mentorship to develop their work from Julia Carlomagno, publisher at Monash University Publishing. 

The a special winners announcement event will be hosted digitally on the Express Media YouTube channel 3PM AEDT 25th November, 2022. Keep an eye on our socials and on our channel so you don’t miss out.

In the meantime, congratulations to all our shortlisted writers! 

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Roumina Parsamand is an Iranian-Australian immigrant currently completing her Master’s in Creative Writing. Her previous work has appeared in Farrago Magazine.

Elizabeth Bourke grew up in the shadow of an oil refinery on unceded Dharawal land. She won third place in the 2022 Honi Soit Fiction Writing Competition and has been published in The Newcomer’s Journal. She was selected to take part in Express Media’s ToolkitsLITE: Fiction program, and awarded first place in the 2016 CYA Conference Writing Competition (Hatchlings).

Suri Matondkar is a shortlistee of the 2022 Island Nonfiction Prize, the 2022 Nillumbik Prize for Contemporary Writing, the 2021 Deakin Nonfiction Prize and winner of the 2020 Deakin Postgraduate Prize in Writing. She uses too many gifs in work emails and is terrified of phone calls.

Jess Beverley is a queer Australian writer from Victoria. They use they/them pronouns and want to see more gender-diverse and queer characters in the Australian non-fiction and fiction industry, especially for young adult audiences. They are currently completing their Associate Degree of Professional Editing and Writing at RMIT University.

Noa Shenker is currently studying his Masters of Creative Writing, Editing and Publishing at Melbourne Uni. He’s a big fan of HBO, Taylor Swift and the Melbourne Demons. His work can be found in Voiceworks, Farrago and Catalyst.

Sar Fegan lives and works on Wurundjeri Country. They are a white dyke writer who uses experimental forms to explore memory, madness and mess. Sar’s writing has appeared in Voiceworks, Going Down Swinging and Butch Is Not a Dirty Word.”

Robbie Mason is a young freelance writer, gonzo journalism enthusiast and zine-maker, previously published in Vice, Voiceworks, ARNA, Pulp, Honi Soit, Verve Zine and other obscure corners of the internet. He is currently studying a Masters of Publishing at the University of Sydney.

Viv Baker is a student and writer on unceded Wurundjeri land. They write essays, prose, poetry and combinations of these that deal with light, colour, going for emotionally charged walks, the terror of having a body, etc. Her other passions include reusing teabags and shoes off inside.

Elena Perse is a writer, bookseller and Master of Publishing student. She lives in Boorloo (Perth) with her ever-expanding collection of funky earrings. You can find her more of her work in Westerly, Pelican and Damsel Magazines.

Phoebe Lupton is a disabled creative, freelance writer and social work student. She is an Anglo-Celtic and Sinhalese settler on unceded Ngunnawal/Ngambri land. You can find Phoebe’s recent work in Antithesis Journal, Overland, Portside Review and Kill Your Darlings, among others.

 

Congratulations to all our shortlisted writers!